


His Care and His Command

by Whimzlogo



Category: DreamWorks Dragons (Cartoon), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Alpha Toothless (How to Train Your Dragon), Character Study, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Hugs, No Dialogue, Not In Chronological Order, Not THW-compliant, One Shot Collection, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Gift Of The Night Fury, Post-How to Train Your Dragon 2
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:00:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22739965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whimzlogo/pseuds/Whimzlogo
Summary: Toothless, as seen by his found family and his peers, set anywhere between before or after his ascension to Alpha status.
Relationships: Cloudjumper & Toothless (How to Train Your Dragon), Gustnudger & Toothless (How to Train Your Dragon), Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III & Toothless
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	1. Cloudjumper (feat. Gustnudger)

**Author's Note:**

> I put the tag "Toothless Appreciation" on another work of mine. I don't intend to do so with this work (and may even take it off that one), but you can probably infer from the summary of this work that that's what this is going to be.  
> I love this dragon, and it took me a few months to recognize that what was done with his character in the third film really did not sit well with me. Whatever writing is put in this work won't serve to rewrite any of that, or call it out, but rather just to write about Toothless the way I enjoy seeing/thinking about him.
> 
> I might reference the Rise of Berk app game a fair few times, because that game has so many cute, creative descriptions/names/stories in it to bounce off of, and I basically consider it all canon. 
> 
> Updates may very well be infrequent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The below piece was originally intended to be a one off story about Gustnudger ([this](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/howtotrainyourdragon/images/f/f7/1481799725112.png/revision/latest?cb=20190101183544) cutie of a background dragon from HTTYD2) trying to win over the favor of Toothless in a sort of hero worship-esque manner, while Cloudjumper just sort of watches idly from the sidelines. It was written while I was basking in a particularly potent bout of nostalgia for the second movie; my favorite piece of media from the whole franchise.

The hangar was filled to the brim with friendly, loud-mouthed, hungrily munching dragons who were finally digging in to their share of the fish they helped the Vikings of Berk reel in that day.

It was a hectic atmosphere that Cloudjumper wasn't always the most content sitting in for long; wyverns with wingspans more suited for the sky swooping overhead at close range, not quite touching the floor and just barely grazing the ceiling; baby Scuttleclaws using his spiky back as a ramp for running up to leap off the crest of his head and parachute to the floor; guttural-voiced dragons having roaring matches that shake the whole cliffside and send the fainter-hearted half of the miniature dragon populace scattering.

Two adolescent Nadders even got into a spine-shooting contest one time amidst the chaos; tacking cod fish to the wall in a messy game that, admittedly, _did_ make the hangar smell nice for a while, even if the humans who entered the next day made their disagreeing verbally known.

His Alpha took every last occurrence that happened during mealtime— good _or_ bad— in stride. Or, perhaps, he was just barely scraping by, and Cloudjumper only thought the sociable Night Fury was good at his job because he was more accustomed to being packed in with hundreds of dragons in an enclosed space. Had five years of it under his metaphorical belt.

Regardless, it was apparent to Cloudjumper that despite Toothless' overall sweet, playful nature, he had had experience leading a flock long before any dragon thought to bow down to him.

He was a good leader, who lacked the stoicism and mystique of the Great Bewilderbeast but made up for that with strategy and creative thinking far surpassing any dragon Cloudjumper had ever known in his whole lifetime.

He was also chillingly true to his kind's name, as it was the collective hope and wish of the whole Berkian flock that they would never again have to see _fury_ in the eyes of their Alpha like the kind they saw in them the day he _became_ their Alpha.

Fury like that seemed a world away from touching him now, thankfully. The wearily-moving Strike Class dragon had happened upon a baby Gronckle hopping fruitlessly to reach one of two large basins of fish with tiny, paper-thin wings that didn't yet know how to stay snapped out in flight. Toothless put on a kind, gummy grin that was steadily growing in popularity around the flock and gave the young one a boost with his forepaws, watching with a happy shaking of his finned hindquarters as the tiny thing blasted off into the deep storage of Icelandic cod with a splash.

He propelled himself up onto the edge of it himself and grabbed off two fish from the pile in his mouth, then returned to the floor with a weighty thud and trotted away, heading in the direction of the wide-open hangar door that dragons were still flitting in and out of. The instant he saw Cloudjumper, said trot turned into a canter, and then a full-fledged run with half a tail flying out behind him.

He skidded to a stop before the Stormcutter, who sharply looked down in response to the fish that flew out of the Fury's mouth and slapped him in the ridged chest. Rather than bend down to eat it himself like he normally would have, Cloudjumper pushed it back across the floor to meet his Alpha's waiting claws, trilling an insistence that he needed to eat more.

Toothless reclaimed the fish he never meant to throw, but had no evident interest in eating more than he had taken. He warbled in summons to be followed out to the wooden balcony— the very one Cloudjumper was so sure would fall to ruins one day if enough dragons stood on it at once— and broke into a bouncy gait through the massive archway. Fresh, evening air that smelled of grass and seawater swamped them as they stepped outdoors.

Cloudjumper vented through his nostrils and tailed his leader, far slower, looking around to survey his path as he did; it was far easier for him to miss the little ones, and the plain out _smaller_ adult dragons, because of his giant stature.

No fledglings. What he _did_ happen to see was a certain green-scaled Windgnasher who was seemingly welded to the side of the archway with his wings closely tucked and yellow eyes slitted, watching Toothless pass with visible interest.

Everyone was interested in the Alpha, Cloudjumper figured. He strode on by, barking a standard greeting to the younger dragon on his way out.

It seemed all Toothless wanted to do was lay out on the platform and eat quietly. Cloudjumper flanked him happily once he realized this, taking any unofficial _or_ Alpha-directed excuse he could find to get out of the cramped madhouse over his shoulder. Perhaps Toothless knew this.

So they sat, listening to waves crash against the rocks far below, enjoying a few moments of peace spent reveling in the work that had gotten done that day. It included wearing down the spikes of blue-green ice that still plagued the landscape of Berk, reminding them every single day of the battle fought and won less than a week ago.

Cloudjumper caught Toothless staring hard at the malevolent work of the Bad Alpha on his last swallow of food, emerald eyes focused on that and not reacting to the flavor of the freshly caught fish.

He broke out of it moments later and turned his friendly eyes on his giant friend, who tilted his head curiously. The wind that passed over buffeted the smaller dragon's ear nubs, making him shake his head in irritation and finally stand on all four legs, dark skin twitching over toned muscles. He disappeared behind Cloudjumper's upper set of wings, making his head twist around to follow— not fast enough to deter the Fury from pouncing onto his back in a sudden, spontaneous act of playfulness.

He realized the calm of his Alpha had all been a ruse, and he _definitely_ should have known better than to take it at face value.

He played along, knowing full well that although Toothless was an adult dragon of moderate maturity, he also wasn't much older than the young, troublemaking Deadly Nadders pinning fish to the wall with their spines. As second-in-command to the Alpha, it was Cloudjumper's additional (albeit not enforced) duty to make sure the flock leader wasn't without something to do.

Toothless had more patience afterwards, no matter how brief. Cloudjumper saw him down on the ground with his shaggy-haired human— less often as of late, but all the same— taking mock swipes at his face. If it wasn't Hiccup he was playing with, it was that female Gronckle that Hiccup's much larger friend rode. Both of their names slipped Cloudjumper's mind.

It was evident of the fact that Toothless didn't often wrestle with humans _or_ dragons much larger than himself, and he saw Cloudjumper's recurring presence as a way to remedy that. Cloudjumper didn't care much for it, but he didn't outright detest it either.

The lively Night Fury chirred a laugh as he was boxed in by both sets of his second-in-command's mighty wings. Cloudjumper tipped the lefthand side and smacked him off with his right, sending him sprawling across the wood panel balcony.

Toothless rolled and wound up on his back, all four legs in the air. Cloudjumper wished he could have been keener to the heavy thudding on the wood running up behind him when he first heard it, but by the time it mattered, it was too late.

A streak of chartreuse blitzed in, and in seconds a large pile of fish was dropped on Toothless' face while he was down, as dispensed from the jaws of the same Windgnasher dragon from earlier. Cloudjumper's eyes went wide in response to the incurring _SPLAT!_

The young dragon— arguably younger than their Alpha— took a few steps back with his large, bipedal legs, wearing a bright, hopeful expression after the deed was done.

Toothless' face stayed submerged in the pile of whole _and_ mangled fish a moment longer before he squirmed out from under it with a grunt, uprighting himself with a twist. He shook his head erratically, then turned a slight glare on the ice nest local, rightfully accusing. His nose wrinkled with the effort not to growl.

Sensing the dissatisfaction with his actions, the Windgnasher backed off farther, until he disappeared into the better-lit hangar room adorned with torches and sauntered off, glancing around innocently as he did.


	2. Hiccup Haddock III

It was after their brisk, icy flight the day after their first Snoggletog together that Hiccup realized Toothless was almost too smart to handle. Not counting the short bout of figurative arm wrestling his dragon and himself partook in to safely mount and leave his hut without Toothless' usual tack and connected red tail fin— which had also been awfully, endearingly genius.

They landed on a rocky, snow-covered outcrop that stood against the pure white sky; the tallest they could find around the archipelago they called home. The general idea had been to take a breather not buffeted back into their throats by the biting wind. Take in the sights. And, _maybe_ , if they were still feeling it, sky dive down its length and bank above the freezing water before they hit it. Toothless was getting his timing down, and Hiccup's accuracy with the pedal was only improving. After two straight hours of flying and little room for stillness, it would feel nice to take a step back and admire their progress.

It took them all the way to the top of the bluff they stood separate on now, and they couldn't say that only a few short months ago. How time flew (no pun intended).

Hiccup wasn't wearing his helmet today. He supposed he decided not to wear it by the same merit Toothless decided not to wear the self-operating tail fin, and it was crystal clear that neither friend held the intuitive logic against the other. One thing Hiccup was holding against _himself_ was his insistence on wearing clothes no different than what he would normally, instinctively wear on a fair spring day.

It had been almost warm in the morning, with sunlight twinkling on the untouched snow and a mostly-blue sky to compliment.

But _now_?

Hiccup came from a long line of Vikings, and despite his scrawny build and quick-paced disposition, he could still withstand the most frigid of temperatures with the best of 'em... and even _he_ was shivering. The clouds overhead filtered over and through each other in varying shades of gray as the boy shouldered closer to his Night Fury, who was as steady and unflinching as the usual fare. He was like a shadow against the blaring brightness of a sky making promises of a blizzard, and Hiccup never felt safer beside anyone else— dragon _or_ human.

He had worked up a sweat maneuvering through the air with his winged buddy, but now that they were comfortably perched and standing beside one another, the cold fought back with a vengeance. Hiccup pressed the backs of hands he could scarcely feel to his fur vest, fruitlessly trying to warm them. He heard a chuff to his left and looked, surprised by the thin streaks of smoke that billowed out of Toothless' nostrils and got carried away on the wind.

"Don't tell me you're cold, too, bud?"

Toothless sniffed and shook his head, green eyes narrowing despite squared-off pupils dilating. He made eye contact with his rider before shuffling faintly closer to him, the metal in his tack clinking around against his scales. Hiccup heard a croon, and watched in curiosity as the ornery reptile put a majority of his weight into his hind legs and inclined his scarred neck. His chin was pressing down Hiccup's skinny shoulder in seconds, throwing off the small Viking's balance by a lot.

"Bud—? Oop!" A strong foreleg wrapped him up and pulled him in. Hiccup's back and head hit the dragon's firm wall of a chest. He fit well under Toothless' lower jaw without need of ducking down. "What- what is-?" His developing question got left behind somewhere between his palate and teeth, as it got answered all too quickly.

Toothless was _warm_. His foreleg lowered to the smooth rock once he knew Hiccup wouldn't leave, purring as the Viking turned around to press his small hands to his heater-like chest.

"Ah," acknowledged Hiccup, brightly. "Thanks, bud."

The pose seamlessly transitioned into his arms wrapping fully around Toothless' neck. And, just like in the Great Hall when he returned from collecting the lost helmet, Toothless didn't appear to mind. Hiccup was starting to think he could get used to hugging dragons— with a dragon like Toothless to warm him up to the idea.


End file.
